Appearanoe of a
Bird in 83- 40' South Latitude: Our last
Pony engulfed, December 7: Dangerous Travelling in a Maze of Crevasses:
Discovery
of Coal at an altitude of 6100 ft.

December 5.
Broke camp sharp at 8 A.M. and proceeded south down an icy slope to the
main
glacier. The ice was too slippery for the pony, so Wild took him by a
circuitous route to the bottom on snow. At the end of our ice slope,
down which
the sledge skidded rapidly, though we had put on rope brakes and hung
on to it
as well as we could, there was a patch of soft snow running parallel
with the
glacier, which here trended about south-west by south. Close ahead of
us were
the massed-up, fantastically shaped and split masses of pressure across
which
it would have been impossible for us to have gone, but, fortunately, it
was not
necessary even to try, for close into the land was a snow slope free
from all
crevasses, and along this gentle rise we made our way. After a time
this snow
slope gave place to blue ice, with numberless cracks and small
crevasses across
which it was quite impossible for the pony to drag the sledge without a
serious
risk of a broken leg in one of the many holes, the depth of which we
could not ascertain.
We therefore unharnessed Socks, and Wild took him over this bit of
ground very
carefully, whilst we others first hauled our sledge and then the pony
sledge
across to a patch of snow under some gigantic granite pillars over 2000
ft. in
height, and here, close to some thaw water, we made our lunch camp. I
was still
badly snow-blind, so stayed in camp whilst Marshall and Adams went on
to spy
out a good route to follow after lunch was over. When they returned
they
informed me that there was more cracked-up blue ice ahead, and that the
main
pressure of the glacier came in very close to the pillar of granite
that stood
before us, but that beyond that there appeared to be a snow slope and
good
going. The most remarkable thing they reported was that as they were
walking
along a bird, brown in colour with a white line under each wing, flew
just over
their heads and disappeared to the south. It is, indeed, strange to
hear of
such an incident in latitude 83° 40' South. They were sure it was not a
skua
gull, which is the only bird I could think of that would venture down
here, and
the gull might have been attracted by the last dead pony, for when in
latitude
80° 30' South, on my last southern trip, a skua gull arrived shortly
after we
had killed a dog.

After lunch we
started again, and by
dint of great exertions managed, at 6 P.M., to camp after getting both
sledges
and then the pony over another couple of miles of crevassed blue ice.
We then
went on and had a look ahead, and saw that we are going to have a tough
time
to-morrow to get along at all. I can see that it will, at least, mean
relaying
three or four times across nearly half a mile of terribly crevassed
ice,
covered in places with treacherous snow, and razor-edged in other
places, all
of it sloping down towards the rock debris strewn shore on the cliff
side. We
are camped under a wonderful pillar of granite that has been rounded by
the
winds into a perfectly symmetrical shape, and is banded by lines of
gneiss.
There is just one little patch of snow for our tents, and even that
bridges
some crevasses. Providence will look over us to-night, for we can do
nothing
more. One feels that at any moment some great piece of rock may come
hurtling
down, for all round us are pieces of granite, ranging from the size of
a
hazel-nut to great boulders twenty to forty tons in weight, and on one
snow
slope is the fresh track of a fallen rock. Still we can do no better,
for it is
impossible to spread a tent on the blue ice, and we cannot get any
further
to-night. We are leaving a depot here. My eyes are my only trouble, for
their
condition makes it impossible for me to pick out the route or do much
more than
pull. The distance covered to-day was 9 miles with 4 miles relay.

December 6.
Started at 8 A.M. to-day
in fine weather to get our loads over the half-mile of crevassed ice
that lay
between us and the snow slope to the south-south-west. We divided up
the load
and managed to get the whole lot over in three journeys, but it was an
awful
job, for every step was a venture, and I, with one eye entirely blocked
up
because of snow-blindness, felt it particularly uncomfortable work.
However, by
1 P.M. all our gear was safely over, and the other three went back for
Socks.
Wild led him, and by 2 P.M. we were all camped on the snow again.
Providence
has indeed looked after us. At 3 P.M. we started south-south-west up a
long
slope to the right of the main glacier pressure. It was very heavy
going, and
we camped at 5 P.M. close to a huge crevasse, the snow bridge of which
we
crossed. There is a wonderful view of the mountains, with new peaks and
ranges
to the south-east, south and south-west. There is a dark rock running
in
conjunction with the granite on several of the mountains. We are now
over 1700
ft. up on the glacier, and can see down on to the Barrier. The cloud
still
hangs on the mountain ahead of us; it certainly looks as though it were
a
volcano cloud, but it may be due to condensation. The lower current
clouds are
travelling very fast from south-south-east to north-north-west. The
weather is
fine and clear, and the temperature plus 17° Fahr.

LOWER GLACIER
DEPOT,
THE STORES WERE BURIED IN THE SNOW NEAR THE ROCK IN THE FOREGROUND

December 7.
Started at 8 A.M., Adams, Marshall and self pulling one sledge. Wild
leading
Socks behind. We travelled up and down slopes with very deep snow, into
which
Socks sank up to his belly, and we plunged in and out continuously,
making it
very trying work. Passed several crevasses on our right hand and could
see more
to the left. The light became bad at 1 P.M., when we camped for lunch,
and it
was hard to see the crevasses, as most were more or less snow covered.
After
lunch the light was better, and as we marched along we were
congratulating
ourselves upon it when suddenly we heard a shout of " help

from Wild. We
stopped at once and
rushed to his assistance. and saw the pony sledge with the forward end
down a
crevasse and Wild reaching out from the side of the gulf grasping the
sledge.
No sign of the pony. We soon got up to Wild, and he scrambled out of
the
dangerous position, but poor Socks had gone. Wild had a miraculous
escape. He
was following up our tracks, and we had passed over a crevasse which
was
entirely covered with snow, but the weight of the pony broke through
the snow
crust and in a second all was over. Wild says he just. felt a sort of
rushing
wind, the leading rope was snatched from his hand, and he put out his
arms and
just caught the further edge of the chasm. Fortunately for Wild and us,
Socks'
weight snapped the swingle-tree of the sledge, so it was saved, though
the
upper bearer is broken. We lay down on our stomachs and looked over
into the
gulf, but no sound or sign came to us; black bottomless pit it seemed
to be. We
hitched the pony sledge to ourselves and started off again. now with a
weight
of 1000 lb. for the four of us. Camped at 6.20 P.M., very tired, having
to
retreat from a maze of crevasses and rotten ice on to a patch where we
could
pitch our tents. We are indeed thankful for Wild's escape. When I think
over
the events of the day I realise what the loss of the sledge would have
meant to
us. We would have had left only two sleeping-bags for the four of us,
and I
doubt whether we could have got back to winter-quarters with the short
equipment. Our chance of reaching the Pole would have been gone. We
take on the
maize to eat ourselves. There is one ray of light in this bad day, and
that is
that anyhow we could not have taken Socks on much further. We would
have had to
shoot him to-night, so that although his loss is a serious matter to
us, for we
had counted on the meat, still we know that for traction purposes he
would have
been of little further use. When we tried to camp to-night we stuck our
ice-axes into the snow to see whether there were any more hidden
crevasses, and
everywhere the axes went through. It would have been folly to have
pitched our
camp in that place, as we might easily have dropped through during the
night.
We had to retreat a quarter of a mile to pitch the tent. It was very
unpleasant
to turn back, even for this short distance, but on this job one must
expect
reverses.

December 8.
Started at 8 A.M. and immediately began dodging crevasses and pits of
unknown
depth. Wild and I were leading, for, thank heaven, my eyes are fit and
well
again. We slowly toiled up a long crevassed slope, and by lunch time
were about
1900 ft. up the glacier had covered 6 miles 150 yards of an uphill
drag, with
about 250 lb. per man to haul. After lunch we still travelled up, but
came on
to blue glacier ice almost free from crevasses, so did much better, the
sledges
running easily. We camped at 6 P.M., the day's journey having been 12
miles 150
yards. The slope we went up in the morning was not as bad as we had
anticipated, but quite bad enough for us to be thankful that we are
out, at any
rate for a time, from the region of hidden crevasses. The hypsometer
to-night
gave our height as 2300 ft. above sea-level. It is beautifully fine
still. We
have been wonderfully fortunate in this, especially in view of the
situation we
are in.

December 9.
Another splendid day as far as the weather is concerned, and much we
needed it,
for we have had one of our hardest day's work and certainly the most
dangerous
so far. We started at 7.45 A.M. over the blue ice, and in less than an
hour
were in a perfect maze of crevasses, some thinly bridged with snow and
others
with a thicker and therefore more deceptive covering. Marshall went
through one
and was only saved by his harness. He had quite disappeared down below
the
level of the ice, and it was one of those crevasses that open out from
the top,
with no bottom to be seen, and I daresay there was a drop of at least
1000 ft.
Soon after, Adams went through, then I did. The situation became
momentarily
more dangerous and uncertain. The sledges, skidding about, came up
against the
sheer, knife-like edges of some of the crevasses, and thus the bow of
the
second sledge, which had been strained when Socks fell, gave way. We
decided to
relay our gear over this portion of the glacier until we got on to
safer ground,
and it was well past eleven o'clock before we had got both sledges on
to better
ice. We camped at 11.45 A.M. to get the sun's meridian altitude, and,
to save
time while watching the sun's rise and fall, decided to lunch at noon.
The
latitude we found to be 84° 2' South, which is not so bad considering
that we
have been hauling our heavy load of 250 lb. per man uphill for the last
two
days. At noon we were nearly 2500 ft. above sea-level. In the afternoon
we had
another heavy pull, and now are camped between two huge crevasses, but
on a
patch of hard snow. We pitched camp at 6 P.M., very tired and extremely
hungry
after dragging uphill all the afternoon for over five hours. It is 8
P.M. now,
and we are nearly 3000 ft. above sea-level. Low cumulus clouds are
hanging to
the south of us, as they have done for many days past, obscuring any
view in
that direction. We are anxiously hoping to find soon a level and inland
ice-sheet so that we can put on more speed. The distance to-day was 11
miles
1450 yards plus two miles relay. The talk now is mainly about food and
the
things we would like to eat, and at meal-times our hoosh disappears
with far
too great speed. We are all looking forward to Christmas Day, for then,
come
what may, we are going to be full of food.

December 10.
Falls, bruises, cut shins, crevasses, razor-edged ice, and a heavy
upward pull
have made up the sum of the day's trials, but there has been a measure
of
compensation in the wonderful scenery, the marvellous rocks arid the
covering
of a distance of 11 miles 860 yards towards our goal. We started at
7.30 A.M.
amongst crevasses, but soon got out of them and pulled up a long slope
of snow.
Our altitude at noon was 3250 ft. above sea-level. Then we slid down a
blue ice
slope, after crossing crevasses. Marshall and I each went down one. We
lunched
at 1 P.M. and started at 2 P.M. up a long ridge by the side moraine of
the
glacier. It was heavy work, as the ice was split and presented
knife-like edges
between the cracks, and there were also some crevasses. Adams got into
one. The
going was terribly heavy, as the sledges brought up against the
ice-edges every
now and then, and then there was a struggle to get them started again.
We
changed our foot-gear, substituting ski-booth for the finnesko, but
nevertheless
had many painful falls on the treacherous blue ice, cutting our hands
and
shins. We are all much bruised. We camped on a patch of snow by the
land at 6
P.M. The rocks of the moraine are remarkable, being of every hue and
description. I cannot describe them, but we will carry specimens back
for the
geologists to deal with. The main rocks of the "Cloud-Maker," the
mountain under which we are camped, appear to be slates, reef-quartz
and a very
hard, dark brown rock, the name of which I do not know. The erratics of
marble,
conglomerate, and breccia are beautiful, showing a great mass of
wonderful
colours, but these rocks we cannot take away. We can only take with us
small
specimens of the main rocks, as weight is of importance to us, and from
these small
specimens the geologists must determine the character of the land. This
mountain is the one we thought might be an active volcano when we saw
it from
the mountain at the foot of the glacier, but the cloud has blown away
from its
head to-day, and we can see definitely that it is not a volcano. It is
a
remarkable sight as it towers above us with the snow clinging to its
sides.
To-night there is a cold north wind. I climbed about 600 ft. up the
mountain
and got specimens of the main rocks in situ. The glacier is evidently
moving
very slowly, and not filling as much of the valley as it did at some
previous
date, for the old moraines lie higher up in terraces. Low cumulus
clouds to the
south are hiding some of the new land in that direction. We are all
very hungry
and tired to-night after the day's fight with glacier. Whilst I went up
the
mountain to spy out the land the others ground up the balance of the
maize,
brought for pony feed, between flat stones, in order that we may use it
ourselves to eke out our supply of food. The method of preparation was
primitive, but it represented the only way of getting it fit to cook
without
the necessity of using more oil than we can spare for lengthy boiling.
The
temperature was plus 12° Fahr. at noon to-day, and is plus 14° nu w at
8 P.M.
We are getting south and we hope to reach the inland ice in a couple of
days;
then our marching will be faster. The weather is still fine.

THE CAMP BELOW
"THE CLOUDMAKER"

December
11. A heavy day. We started away at 7.40 A.M. and tried to
keep alongside
the land, but the ice of the glacier sloped so much that we had to go
on to the
ridge, where the sledges could run without side-slipping. This slipping
cuts
the runners very badly. We crossed the medial moraine, and found rock
there with
what looked like plant impressions. We collected some specimens.

In the
afternoon we found the
surface better, as the cracks were nearly all filled up with water
turned to
ice. We camped for lunch on rubbly ice. After lunch we rounded some
pressure
ridges fairly easily, and then pulled up a long ice-slope with many
sharp
points. All the afternoon we were passing over ice in which the cracks
had been
closed up, and we began to have great hopes that the end of the glacier
was in
sight, and that we would soon be able to put in some good marches on
the
plateau. At 5 P.M. we found more cracks and a mass of pressure ice
ahead and
land appeared as the clouds ahead lifted. I cannot tell what it means,
but the
position makes us anxious. The sledges will not stand much more of this
ice
work, and we are still 340 geographical miles away from the Pole. Thank
God the
weather is fine still. We camped at 6 P.M. on hard ice between two
crevasses.
There was no snow to pack round the tents, so we had to put the sledges
and the
provision bags on the snow cloths. We made the floor level inside by
chipping
away the points of ice with our ice-axes. We were very hungry after
hoosh
tonight. Awkward features about the glacier are the little pits filled
with
mud, of which I collected a small sample.1 It
seems to be
ground-down rock material, but what the action has been I cannot tell.
The hot
sun, beating down on this mud, makes it gradually sink into the body of
the
glacier, leaving a rotten ice covering through which we often break. It
is like
walking over a cucumber frame, and sometimes the boulders that have
sunk down
through the ice can be seen 3 or 4 ft. below the surface. The ice that
has
formed above the sunken rocks is more clear than the ordinary glacier
ice. We
are 3700 ft. up, and made 8 miles 900 yards to the good to-day. We have
the
satisfaction of feeling that we are getting south, and perhaps
to-morrow may
see the end of all our difficulties. Difficulties are just things to
overcome
after all. Every one is very fit.

December 12.
Our distance — three miles for the day — expresses more readily than I
can
write it the nature of the day's work. We started at 7.40 A.M. on the
worst
surface possible, sharp-edged blue ice full of chasms and crevasses,
rising to
hills and descending into gullies; in fact, a surface that could not be
equalled in any polar work for difficulty in travelling. Our sledges
are
suffering greatly, and it is a constant strain on us both to save the
sledges
from breaking or going down crevasses, and to save ourselves as well.
We are a
mass of bruises where we have fallen on the sharp ice, but, thank God,
no one
has even a sprain. It has been relay work to-day, for we could only
take on one
sledge at a time, two of us taking turns at pulling the sledge whilst
the
others steadied and held the sledge to keep it straight. Thus we would
advance
one mile, and then return over the crevasses and haul up the other
sledge. By
repeating this to-day for three miles we marched nine miles over a
surface
where many times a slip meant death. Still we have advanced three miles
to the
south, and to-night we are camped on a patch of neve. By using our
ice-axes we
made a place for the tent. The weather is still splendidly fine, though
low
clouds obscure our horizon to the south. We are anxiously hoping to
cross the
main pressure to-morrow, and trust that we will then have better
travelling.
Given good travelling, we will not be long in reaching our goal.
Marshall is
putting in the bearings and angles of the new mountains. They still
keep
appearing to the west and east. Distance 3 miles 500 yards, with relays
9 miles
1500 yards.

December 13.
We made a start at 8 A.M. and once again went up hill and down dale,
over
crevasses and blue, ribbed ice, relaying the sledges. We had covered
about a
mile when we came to a place where it seemed almost impossible to
proceed.
However, to our right, bearing about south-west by south, there seemed
to be
better surface and we decided to make a detour in that direction in
order, if
possible, to get round the pressure. While returning for one of the
sledges I
fell on the ice and hurt my left knee, which was a serious matter, or
rather
might have been. I have had a bandage on all the afternoon while
pulling, and
the knee feels better now, but one realises what it would mean if any
member of
our party were to be damaged under these conditions and in this place.
This
afternoon we came on to a better surface, and were able to pull both
sledges
instead of relaying. We are still gradually rising, and to-night our
hypsometer
gives 203.7, or 4370 ft. up. There is a cool southerly wind indeed,
more than
we have had before, and as we have only a patch of nave on the glacier
for our
tents, we had to take the provision bags and gear off the sledges to
keep the tent-cloths
down. The temperature is plus 19° Fahr. New mountains are still
appearing to
the west-south-west as we rise. We seem now to be going up a long
yellow track,
for the ice is not so blue, and we are evidently travelling over an old
moraine, where the stones have sunk through the ice when its onward
movement
has been retarded. I am sure that the bulk of the glacier is growing
less, but
the onward movement still continues, though at a much slower pace than
at some
previous period. The gain for the day was five miles, and in addition
we did
four miles relay work.

December 14.
This has been one of our hardest day's work so far. We have been
steering all
day about south-south-west up the glacier, mainly in the bed of an
ancient
moraine, which is full of holes through which the stones and boulders
have
melted down long years ago. It has been snowing all day with a high
temperature, and this has made everything very wet. We have ascended
over 1000
ft. to-day, our altitude at 6 P.M. being 5600 ft. above sea-level, so
the
mountains to the west must be from 10,000 to 15,000 ft. in height,
judging from
their comparative elevation. My knee is better to-day. We have had a
heavy pull
and many falls on the slippery ice. Just before camping, Adams went
through
some snow, but held up over an awful chasm. Our sledges are much the
worse for
wear, and the one with the broken bow constantly strikes against the
hard,
sharp ice, pulling us up with a jerk and often flinging us down. At
this high
altitude the heavy pulling is very trying, especially as we slip on the
snow
covering the blue ice. There has evidently been an enormous glaciation
here,
and now it is dwindling away. Even the mountains show signs of this.
To-night
our hopes are high that we are nearly at the end of the rise and that
soon we
will reach our longed-for plateau. Then southward indeed ! Food is the
determining factor with us. We did 7i miles to-day.

December 15.
Started at 7.40 A.M. in clear weather. It was heavy going uphill on the
blue
ice, but gradually we rose the land ahead, and it seemed as though at
last we
were going to have a change, and that we would see something new. At
lunchtime
we were on a better surface, with patches of snow, and we could see
stretching
out in front of us what was apparently a long, wide plain. It looked as
though
now really we were coming to the level ground for which we have longed,
especially as the hypsometer gave us an altitude of 7230 ft., but this
altitude
at night came down to 5830 ft., so the apparent height may be -due to
barometric pressure and change of weather, for in the afternoon a stiff
breeze
from the south-west sprang up. The temperature was plus 18° Fahr. at
noon, and
when the wind came up it felt cold, as we were pulling in our pyjama
trousers,
with nothing underneath. We have been going steadily uphill all the
afternoon,
but on a vastly improved surface, consisting of hard neve instead of
blue ice
and no cracks, only covered-in crevasses, which are easily seen. Ahead
of us
really lies the plateau. We can also see ahead of us detached
mountains,
piercing through the inland ice, which is the road to the south for us.
Huge
mountains stretch out to the east and west. After last week's toil and
anxiety
the change is delightful. The distance covered to-day was 13 miles 200
yards.

December 16.
We started at 7 A.M., having had breakfast at 5.30 A.M. It was snowing
slightly
for the first few hours, and then the weather cleared. The surface was
hard and
the going good. We camped at noon and took sights for latitude, and
ascertained
that our position was 84° 50' South. Ahead of us we could see a long
slope, icy
and crevassed, but we did 13 miles 1650 yards for the day. We camped at
5.30
P.M., and got ready our depot gear. We have decided to travel as
lightly as
possible, taking only the clothes we are wearing, and we will leave
four days'
food, which I calculate should get us back to the last depot on short
ration.
We have now traversed nearly one hundred miles of crevassed ice, and
risen 6000
ft. on the largest glacier in the world. One more crevassed slope, and
we will
be on the plateau, please God, We are all fit and well. The temperature
to-night is plus 15° Fahr., and the wind is blowing freshly from the
south-west. There are splendid ranges of mountains to the
west-south-west, and
we have an extended view of glacier and mountains. Ahead of us lie
three sharp
peaks, connected up and forming an island in what is apparently inland
ice or
the head of the glacier. The peaks lie due south of us. To the eastward
and
westward of this island the ice bears down from the inland ice-sheet,
and joins
the head of the glacier proper. To the westward the mountains along the
side of
the glacier are all of the bluff type, and the lines of stratification
can be
seen plainly. Still further to the westward, behind the frontal range,
lie
sharper peaks, some of them almost perfect cones. The trend of the land
from
the "Cloudmaker" is about south-southwest. We are travelling up the
west side of the glacier. On the other side, to the east, there is a
break in
the bluff mountains, and the land beyond runs away more to the
south-east. The
valley is filled with pressure ice, which seems to have come from the
inland
ice-sheet. The mountains to the south-east also show lines of
stratification. I
hope that the photographs will be clear enough to give an idea of the
character
of this land. These mountains are not beautiful in the ordinary
acceptance of
the term, but they are magnificent in their stern and rugged grandeur.
No foot
has ever trod on their mighty sides, and until we reached this frozen
land no
human eyes had seen their forms.

December 17.
We made a start at 7.20 A.M. and had an uphill pull all the morning
over blue
ice with patches of snow, which impeded our progress until we learned
that the
best way was to rush the sledges over them, for it was very difficult
to keep
one's footing on the smooth ice, and haul the sledges astern over the
snow. By
1 P.M. we had done eight miles of this ,uphill work, and in the
afternoon we
did four more. We had worked from 7.23 A.M. until 6.40 P.M. with one
hour's
rest for lunch only and it seems as though twelve miles was not much,
but the
last two hours' going was very stiff. We had to take on one sledge at a
time up
the icy slope, and even then we had to cut steps with our ice-axes as
we went
along. The work was made more difficult by the fact that a strong
southerly
wind was dead in our faces. The second sledge we hauled up the rise by
means of
the alpine rope. We made it fast to the sledge, went on with the first
sledge
till the rope was stretched out to its full length, then cut a place to
stand
on, and by our united efforts hauled the sledge up to where we stood.
We
repeated this until we had managed to reach a fairly level spot with
both the
sledges, and we pitched our tents on a small patch of snow. There was
not
enough of the snow to make fast the snow-cloths of the tents, and we
had to
take the gear off the sledges and pile that round to supplement the
snow. We
have burned our boats behind us now as regards warm clothing, for this
afternoon we made a depot in by the rocks of the island we are passing,
and
there left everything except the barest necessaries. After dinner
to-night Wild
went up the hill-side in order to have a look at the plateau. He came
down with
the news that the plateau is in sight at last, and that to-morrow
should see us
at the end of our difficulties. He also brought down with him some very
interesting geological specimens, some of which certainly look like
coal. The
quality may be poor, but I have little doubt that the stuff is coal. If
that
proves to be the case, the discovery will be most interesting to the
scientific
world. Wild tells me that there are about six seams of this dark stuff,
mingled
with sandstone, and that the seams are from 4 in. to 7 or 8 ft. in
thickness.
There are vast quantities of it lyiag on the hill-side. We took a
photograph of
the sandstone, and I wish very much that we could spare tin e to
examine the
rocks more thoroughly. We may be able to co this on the way back. We
have but
little time for geological work, for our way is south and time is
short, but we
found that the main rock is sandstone and on our way back we will
collect some.
I expect that this will be the most southerly rock that we shall
obtain, for we
ought to reach the plateau tomorrow, and then there will be no more
land close
to us. It is gusty to-night, but beautifully clear. The altitude,
according to
the hypsometer, is 6100 ft.

NOTE. When I
showed the specimens to
Professor David after our return to the Nimrod,
he stated definitely that some of them were coal and others " mother of
coal."